[UPDATED: Jerry Amante Served] Obnoxious Blowhard Mayor To Be Served with Recall Papers

UPDATED, APRIL 6, 11:30 A.M.: As promised, the Tustin citizens group trying to recall Mayor Jerry Amante served him with official notice at the council meeting last night. TheLiberalOC reports that although there was space for 25 signatures, 30 residents signed the form. That still leaves 6,970 signatures to go, but it's a good start.

ORIGINAL POST, APRIL 1: It's not exactly news that Tustin Mayor Jerry Amante is an obnoxious bloward.

We've reported this before, here and here. Actually, I think the term we used was "obnoxious a-hole."

Whatever. What is news is that apparently, voters are finally getting sick and tired of Amante and his habit of insulting members of the public and even fellow councilmembers.

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According to The Liberal OC's Dan Chmielewski, who's been following Amante's antics, a group of Tustin residents plans to serve him with recall papers at next Tuesday's city council meeting. Chmielewski writes cryptically that "the organizers of the group have not yet revealed their identities" but that nonetheless, "the petition adheres to the standards required to recall public officials."

7,000 Tustin residents would have to sign the recall petition within 120 days to ensure voters can decide what to do with Amante. Meanwhile, despite the fact that he cannot run for reelection because of term limits, Chmielewski says, the mayor's holding a fundraiser at the Tustin Golf Center on April 6.

"We questioned why a termed-out Mayor/City Council member, with no office to run for, would hold a fundraiser," he wrote. "The consultants managing the event refused to explain what the funds were being used for."

You can read the rest of Chmielewski's blog post, which details the myriad ways Amante has used his public office to promote his reputation as a douchebag, right here.

Award-winning investigative journalist Nick Schou is Editor in Chief of OC Weekly. He is the author of Kill the Messenger: How the CIA’s Crack Cocaine Controversy Destroyed Journalist Gary Webb (Nation Books 2006), which provided the basis for the 2014 Focus Features release starring Jeremy Renner and the L.A. Times-bestseller Orange Sunshine: The Brotherhood of Eternal Love’s Quest to bring Peace, Love and Acid to the World, (Thomas Dunne 2009). He is also the author of The Weed Runners (2013) and Spooked: How the CIA Manipulates the Media and Hoodwinks Hollywood (2016).